The initials BC must stand for ‘Busy Chap’.  Benedict Cumberbatch is set to become the darling of geeks everywhere (if he isn’t already); not content with being the star of Sherlock, with a lead part in the next Star Trek movie, and with not one but TWO roles in The Hobbit movies, rumours abound that Cumberbatch will be the next incarnation of The Doctor’s greatest nemesis, The Master.  According to this report, Britain’s Daily Express tabloid newspaper ran an article stating, ‘It’s fitting that the Doctor comes face to face with his ultimate enemy The Master for the 50th anniversary and it’s felt Benedict is the perfect choice if schedules can work.’

Exciting times for fans of Cumberbatch’s work!  Doctor Who, The Hobbit, Star Trek, Sherlock – where will he pop up next?  Hmmm – an actor from Star Trek taking a trip to Middle earth – remember the result the last time that happened?  What’s that – you don’t??  Well, let us remind you.  *insert evil laugh here….*

Peter Jackson has just posted the following update on his Facebook page:

Hi everybody. We will have a new on-set video from THE HOBBIT coming here soon!

You can be sure TheOneRing.net will have the link to the video as soon as it hits. So keep your eyes peeled.

And don’t forget to come check out our message board where the discussion has already begun in right earnest.

We reported last week that Gandalf was spotted in Manhattan; we also know that Smaug isn’t in Middle earth right now either!  Benedict Cumberbatch is busy in Los Angeles, where he has been filming his role in the forthcoming Star Trek movie.  Two of his previous movies were Oscar nominated this year (War Horse and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy), and as he was in town, Cumberbatch went along to watch the ceremony from Elton John’s party.  Later, as he headed into the Vanity Fair party, he told BBC’s Radio Five Live Breakfast show that he got ‘incredibly excited’ about his first time being in LA for the event, and that the ‘glamour… doesn’t stop.’  (You can listen to the interview with Cumberbatch on the BBC’s website until March 3rd; it starts around the 20 minute mark of this programme.)  He also told television reporters from the UK that he found the event ‘overwhelming’ and ‘extraordinarily… high-octane glamour’.  If you’re in the UK, you can watch the television clip here; or you can read a report on what Cumberbatch had to say, as reported by digital spy.

Cumberbatch also told the BBC that it was a ‘great honour to be invited to the party’.  We know of a good Oscar party at which he’d be very welcome next year!  If he thought things were overwhelming this year, just wait until all the excitement for The Hobbit at the 2013 Oscars!

Thanks to all who entered to win tickets to the Lord of the Rings trilogy screening taking place at Boston’s Coolidge Corner Theatre on Sunday 4th March.  The winners have been notified by email; so if you haven’t heard from us, sorry you weren’t one of the lucky ones!  At time of writing, there were still some tickets remaining for sale – so head over to the Coolidge’s website to snap them up!

Don’t forget the other movie showings leading up to Viggo Mortensen’s presence at the Coolidge on Monday 5th March; three of his movies are being shown this week, details of which can be found here.   Then the man himself will be there to accept the Coolidge Award on Monday 5th; the evening event is sold out, but you can still get tickets to the noon showing of Eastern Promises, which will be followed by a Q&A with Mortensen.

TORn looks forward to seeing you there!  Staffer greendragon will be at the Trilogy screening – so if you see someone wearing a shirt with TheOneRing.net’s logo on it in gold, feel free to come up and say hi!

A decade ago with Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy was making an impact in popular culture, few would have looked at the cast and extras and picked out New Zealand native Bret McKenize as the guy likely to win an Oscar.

But, at tonight’s Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles the fan favorite and one half of New Zealand’s fourth most popular folk parody duo (Flight of the Conchords) did just that for his song Man or Muppet which is really a question we all must answer for ourselves about ourselves.

McKenzie had a little fun at the microphone making a couple of jokes. He said he was excited to work with Muppets and was intimidated to meet Kermit The Frog.

“But he’s just a normal frog, and like many stars here, he’s a lot shorter in real life.” (Catch video after the break) Continue reading “Figwit (Bret McKenzie) wins an Oscar!”

Welcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week. If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions. Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn’s Message Boards. Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join in the fun!  Continue reading “TORn Message Boards Weekly Roundup – February 26, 2012”